Snap-on battery terminal



1961 J. A. AMENT 3,005,181

SNAP-ON BATTERY TERMINAL Filed Feb. 28, 1961 INVENTOR.

JACK A. AME NT 3,005,181 SNAP-N BATTERY TERMINAL Jack A. Ament, Rte. 2, Box 267, Apollo, Pa. Filed Feb. 28, 1961, Ser. No. 92,235 3 Claims. (Cl. 339-239) This invention relates generally to electrical terminals, and more specifically to improvements in battery terminals.

The terminal connection to a battery has always proven to be one of the areas of an electric circuit which requires constant attention. Corrosion of the terminal is one of the causes of circuit failure and it is important to keep such areas clean so as to minimize the effect of this peculiarity. The conventional means of securing a cable to a battery terminal is by utilizing a lead clamp which surrounds the terminal in the form of a split ring. The ends of the ring are secured by a nut and bolt. The main problems experienced with this class of terminal are to be found in the tendency of the split ring to stretch and eventually fail to clamp the terminal in a rigid manner. Another problem stems from the tendency for the nut bolt to become fouled up and corroded, rendering them difficult to remove and adjust. My invention is directed to an improved terminal clamp structure which overcomes the disadvantages experienced with known types of battery clamp terminal.

It is therefore a primary object of this invention to provide a battery clamp terminal which is readily adjustable to compensate for wear and which may be selectively adusted to securely engage over either terminal of the battery.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a battery clamp terminal of the above class which may be released or applied without the use of hand tools in a rapid and efficient manner.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a battery clamp terminal for a battery which is applied without the use of threaded bolts and nuts.

It is yet a further object of this invention to provide a battery clamp terminal which is simple and rugged in construction, and may be manufactured at reasonable cost.

Briefly, the invention involves the provision of an elongated body having a transverse opening formed through one end. A bore extends through the length of the body and communicates inwardly of the opening. A slot is formed transversely through a central portion of the body and receives a lever loosely mounted on a pin.

A threadably adjustable fulcrum engages in the open end of the bore and projects outwardly thereof to form a cable clamp. The lever actuates a plunger which locates in the bore forwardly of the slot and projects into the opening for clamping engagement with the terminal.

A full understanding of the construction of this invention, together with further novel features and advantages, will be had from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, taken in conjunction with the attached drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the terminal clamp which comprises my invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged cross sectional side elevation of the adjustable terminal clamp taken along the line 2'2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a cross sectional end elevation taken along the line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a cross sectional end elevation taken along the line 4-4 of FIG. 2.

Similar reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views in the drawing.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, the numeral 3,005,181 Patented Oct. 17, 1961 5 represents an elongated body of rectangular cross section, having a fiat face 6 at one end and a semi-circular finish 7 at the other end. An opening 8 extends through the body adjacent the semi-circular end 7.. The opening is rectangular at 9 having parallel sides 11 which extend towards the end of the body and terminate with a semicircular face 12 which tapers as indicated in FIG. 2 and is adapted to engage about the tapered post of a battery terminal 13.

A vertical slot 14 is formed centrally through the body to pivotally mount a cam lever 15 by means of a transverse pin 16 which extends through the side of the body. The lever 15 has a normally projecting arm 17 which enters the slot and terminates with a cam plate 18. The cam plate has a curved rear cam surface 19 for actuation against an adjustable fulcrum post 20', and a forwardly directed arcuate cam 21 adapted to extend towards the end 22 of the slot 14. An elongated opening 23 is formed transversely through each side of the slot and receives the transverse pin 16 in a sliding relationship lengthwise of the body.

A bore 24 extends between the end 22 of the slot and the square end face 25 of the opening 8 and slidably mounts a plunger 26 Which protrudes into the slot for engagement by the arcuate cam 21 and into the opening 8 at which point a clamp member 27 is mounted for movement lengthwise of the opening. The clamp member has parallel sides 23 for sliding engagement with the parallel sides 11 of the opening, and a semi-circular tapered front face N for engaging the side of the battery terminal 13.

A threaded bore 29 extends from the fiat face 6 of the body 5 and communicates through the other end 30 of the slot 14, and adjustably receives the fulcrum post 20 which is itself threaded along its length at 31. The post 20 extends outwardly of the bore 29 and terminates with a terminal clamp 32'. The clamp is drilled at 33 in the outer end and receives the bared end 34 of an electric cable 35. A radially extending stud 3'6 securely locks the cable Within the drilling 33.

The operation of this device will be quite apparent to those skilled in the art. The lever 15 is lifted to project vertically out of the slot, thereby permitting the plunger to move into the slot, and the clamp member 27 to open fully with respect to semi-circular face 12 of the opening. The terminal post 13 is positioned within the opening and the lever is returned to the position indicated in FIG. 2. Such movement causes the cam surface 19 to engage against the fulcrum post 20 and the arcuate cam to engage and force the plunger 26 toward the battery terminal. The degree of projection of the fulcrum post 20 into the slot 14 is adjusted such that the clamp member 27 tightly engages the terminal post against the face 12 of the opening 8, when the lever is in the closed position indicated in FIG. 2.

Having described the invention with considerable particularity, it should be understood that various modifications may be made to the detail thereof, without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A terminal connection for a battery comprising, an elongated body, an opening formed transversely through one end of the body, a slot extending through the body spaced from the opening, a lever having a cammed end pivotally supported within the slot, a bore communicating between one end of the slot and the opening and having a plunger extending therethrough, a threaded bore extending from the other end of the slot to the other end of the body, an adjustable fulcrum threadably engaging in the threaded bore and protruding into the slot, said fulcrurn projecting outwardly of the bore and terminating with a cable clamp, said lever adapted to rotate the cammed end Within the slot and force the plunger into the opening to grippingly engage with a battery terminal 3. A terminal connection for a battery according to claim 1 wherein a clamp member is mounted on the end of the plunger projecting into the opening for sliding movement with respect to parallel sides of the said opening, said clamp member having a semi-circular front face for embracing about a portion of the terminal post.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 10 2,183,950 Ackerman Dec. 19, 1939 2,196,327 Ryder Apr. 9, 1940 2,257,013 Johnson Sept. 23, 1941 

